Tom Holland Teases R-Rated Spider-Man Movie After Peter Parker's Punisher Team-Up

A darker Spider-Man story in the Marvel Cinematic Universe could be in the web-slinger’s future.

During a new Empire interview, Tom Holland shared his excitement about having Jon Bernthal’s Punisher in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and he is ready to do more team-ups with the gritty anti-hero. The British star stated, “I would love to pop up in one of [Punisher’s] shows. Let’s see what an R-rated version of Spider-Man looks like. I’m so grateful for Jon for taking the leap and being a part of the film, and I would love to repay the favour.”

Bernthal, who recently made his return to the MCU timeline in Disney+’s The Punisher: One Last Kill, shared with Empire about his and Holland’s history with these characters long before crossing paths on the big screen. The Frank Castle alum added, “I really wasn’t familiar with the Punisher. I wasn’t a huge comic-book guy. Tom was really the one that said, ‘Man, this character’s so great,’ and he explained it to me. We’ve remained friends over the years, but what a beautiful opportunity to do two movies back to back with him with The Odyssey and Spider-Man. I love him. I’m so proud of him.”

While Punisher has been exclusively featured on the small screen in the MCU, the famous vigilante is now getting to be part of Marvel Studios’ theatrical side. This comes only five years after Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock appeared in a cameo in Spider-Man: No Way Home.

However, as much as Holland wants to bring the web-slinger to the small screen through the MCU’s TV shows, there is a massive complication. While Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios are collaborating on Spider-Man stories on the big screen, their deal doesn’t include the small screen.

The main reason why the MCU’s web-crawler hasn’t been directly named in Daredevil: Born Again is because of the Spider-Man TV rights. While they can allude to the iconic hero, they can’t actually name-drop him, let alone use him, unless there is an agreement with Sony.

Hopefully, the next Spider-Man: Brand New Day trailer will showcase more of Peter and Frank’s dynamic, as this will be the first time these characters will get to engage in live-action. It’s possible that if their alliance is received well, Marvel and Sony can perhaps try to work out a potential deal that allows Holland to take part in the Disney+ properties.

If he doesn’t appear in a Marvel TV series, Sony and Marvel could work out an arrangement where Holland’s Spider-Man and Bernthal’s Punisher, as well as other street-level characters, join forces for an MCU Special Presentation. That would likely be easier to settle than having Peter appear in multiple episodes of a show.

After the Spider-Man: Brand New Day story, the MCU will shift the focus to the highly anticipated Avengers movies, with Doomsday and Secret Wars, respectively. As of writing, it hasn’t been announced if Holland will be part of either installment.

However, the bigger question is what lies ahead for Spider-Man in the MCU after the Multiverse Saga is over. A fifth installment for the New York crime-fighter is more than likely being eyed, especially if Brand New Day ends up being a box office success.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is scheduled to open in theaters on July 31.